From the visit of Mary to Elizabeth’s house; through the visits of Jesus to Zacchaeus’s house, Mary and Martha’s house, and Levi’s house; to the visit of the risen Christ to Cleopas’s house, Luke’s gospel is a story of God’s hospitality. God is guest and host, and Jesus’ meal fellowship is a proclamation of God’s inner circle of outsiders, a gathering not of the righteous but of those who have received God’s mercy.
Readings
Isaiah 43:8-13
I am savior, and you are my witnesses
Psalm 124
The Lord will heal the blind and deaf
2 Timothy 4:5-11
The good fight of faith; Luke is with me
Luke 1:1-4; 24:44-53
Luke witnesses to the ministry of Jesus
Worship Themes and Music
Stories of healing and communities of people engaging with one another abound in Luke’s Gospel. Healing, living justly, and spreading the good news of God’s true authority are all themes we share with a broken world this week.
Our hymn of the day takes these themes of healing and relates them well to the struggles of our time. In the third verse we sing: “You touch us through physicians’ skills, through nurses’ gifts of care, and through the love of faithful friends who lift our lives in prayer.”
Reflection Questions
Our human brokenness takes many forms: emotional, mental, physical, relational, and so on. What might healing look like in your life? Who can you reach out to? How can the church help?
